Green Technology: Taking Home Automation to the Next Level
by David Hardy, president, Interior Media

Our experience in integrating home entertainment, communications, lighting control, and climate control for residential properties made us the perfect partner for EcoManor. Laura and Rutherford Seydel selected Interior Media to bring a “green technology” energy monitoring and management system to their landmark home.

A great deal of research within LEEDS guidelines was necessary, as well as finding known available products and technologies to accomplish the owners’ goals. We went to work installing a system that fully monitors utility usage and manages various systems including: lighting, climate control, security, and even water collection. All monitored via a 15-inch touchpanel manufactured by Crestron.

EcoManor is the first home to have such an extensive, real-time energy monitoring system – so the owners can actually alter their consumption. It’s all accomplished through the Crestron® TPMC-15 touchpanel -- which provides easy control of Crestron® infiNET™ Lighting and Crestron Thermostats, as well as Audio/Video distribution and security. The EcoManor TPMC-15 shows the owners’ energy usage in real-time and lets them make changes individually or set the house to react automatically. The house can be set to Economy mode, Miser mode, or even Entertainment mode.

Who left the lights on?
In addition, Interior Media implemented a full array of WattStopper’s® new line of vacancy sensors, occupancy sensors and timers designed for the home. The new Watt Stopper sensors give homeowners a simple way to save energy by automatically turning lights off in empty rooms, thus making ordinary home lighting more green and eco friendly.

The sensors replace wall switches in bathrooms, bedrooms, hallways and other rooms. With vacancy sensors, users press the button to turn lights on; with occupancy sensors lights turn on automatically when someone enters the room. Then, after the room is vacant, lights automatically turn off, ending the typical pattern of hours of wasted energy. Homeowners will no longer need to run around the house turning lights off.

Entertaining Anyone?
Interior Media installed two Philips Plasma TV’s and a Philips LCD TV. Audio comes through Niles High Definition Speakers – found throughout the home, and powered by Niles amplifiers. Interior Media installed Crestron’s CEN-IDOC, which brings the owners’ iPod experience to the Crestron touchpanels. The touchpanels have expanded display areas showing multiple sortable fields such as artist name, song title, and CD title on a single screen. The owners will enjoy a whole house audio experience plus complete iPod functionality.

We helped show how green living can be possible.
Interior Media helped create an eco-friendly and user-friendly environment at EcoManor. Ecomanor was a unique project with many features not found in most homes. The basic concepts were implemented for as little as a few thousand dollars above the cost of typical systems designed for a home like this. It has been a great success that hopefully increases awareness and leads to more ‘green’ homes in the future.

For more information about Interior Media visit: http://www.interiormedia.com